Laws of space in chess

 I don't possess all the skills for giving advice about chess, I am just a humble beginner aware of the basics. I got the following from 'Chess for Dummies' and would like to share with the other members, hope it helps.

1. Use your pawns to gain space in the early phase of the game.

2. Invade only if you can support your pieces.

3. Control the center before attacking on the wings.

4. After you gain control of a square in enemy territory, try to occupy the square with a knight.

5. If your opponent is attacking on a wing, strike back in the center.

 1. fake it till you make it.

2. its a process of putting yourself out there...giving and getting and changing based on responses.

 I am only trying to pass on something i read, if it helps someone even better, I am just a beginner with basic knowledge of chess, not giving out advice from my own experience.

chess for dummies is cool.

Thanks for the tips man, and dont worry about the haters.

I wish there was a way to kick the haters off the form.

I just finished to read a post of a beginner who asked some tips to over 1400 rated player. They answered to share your doubt and info with other beginner. Exactly what u did. And I really appreciated!!!! 

It's clear that you don't pretend to give advices to other people (anyway.... why not?), but just to share what you are reading on a book that a lot of us (me, for example) don't have. I consider this very helpful and I hope you want to share with us other tips

Thanks!

A few clarifications on your tips:

Elplates> 1. Use your pawns to gain space in the early phase of the game.

The opening is a race--both sides aim to develop their pieces and control the center. You actually want to minimize pawn moves... 2-3 in the first 8 moves.

Elplates> 2. Invade only if you can support your pieces.

Wait to attack until all your pieces are developed, unless you can win by force.

Elplates> 3. Control the center before attacking on the wings.

Make sure the center is fixed before attacking on the wings.

Elplates> 4. After you gain control of a square in enemy territory, try to occupy the square with a knight.

After you gain control of a square in enemy territory that your opponent can't defend with a pawn, get your knight to that outpost.

Elplates> 5. If your opponent is attacking on a wing, strike back in the center.

Of course, if your opponent followed rule #3 you can't do this.

 More important than all the above is the following:

On every move, look for CHECKS and CAPTURES for you and your opponent. Under 1400 chess.com your games will mostly be decided by who hangs material.

I don't think the guy was giving advice. I think he was sharing information he read. In the process of sharing that information he had to read it first, then he wrote it, then he read it again as he wrote it.... it sounds like he is 'learning'. Sounds like he's getting his 'head around' the concepts.

Now a guy like likesforests comes in and adds to the discussion with his comments that put a sharper edge to the basic concepts stated by Elplates. He also adds to the list of concepts by saying 'look for checks and captures'. To me this is what this cite should be all about.

I appreciate the question and the follow up.

As tonydal says, few (I'd say none) of those precepts are universally true, but I suppose if you're a beginner it would be useful to try them out in play.

Most important is to see for yourself, by playing and by thinking, how well they work in each position, then to try to understand why they did or did not work. Then you will have gained some understanding of the game, which is far more useful than a list of rules.

Here are Fine's general recommendations, if anyone is looking for quickie help.

TEN OPENING RULES

1. Open with a center pawn.

2. Develop with threats.

3. Knights before Bishops.

4. Don't move the same piece twice.

5. Make as few pawn moves as possible in the opening.

6. Don't bring your Queen out too early.

7. Castle as soon as possible, preferably on the Kingside.

8. Always play to gain control, of the center.

9. Try to maintain at least one pawn in the center.

10. Don't sacrifice without a clear and adequate reason. For a sacrificed pawn you must:

A. Gain three tempi, or
B. Deflect the enemy Queen, or
C. Prevent castling, or
D. Build up a strong attack.

TEN MIDDLEGAME RULES

1. Have all your moves fit into definite plans.
Rules of Planning:

a. A plan must be suggested by some feature in the position.
b. A plan must be based on sound strategic principles.
c. A plan must be flexible,
d. Concrete and,
e. Short.

Evaluating a Position:
a. Material
b. Pawn structure
c. Piece mobility
d. King safety
e. Enemy threats

2. When you are material ahead, exchange as many pieces as possible, especially Queens.

3. Avoid serious pawn weaknesses.

4. In cramped positions free yourself by exchanging

5. Don't bring your King out with your opponent's Queen on the board.

6. All combinations are based on double attack.

7. If your opponent has one or more pieces exposed, look for a combination.

8. In superior positions, to attack the enemy King, you must open a file for your heavy pieces.

9. In even positions, centralize the action of all your pieces.

10. In inferior positions, the best defense is counter-attack, if possible.

TEN ENDGAME RULES

1. To win without pawns, you must be at least a Rook or two minor pieces ahead (with the exception of two knights).

2. The King must be active in the ending.

3. Passed pawns must be pushed (PPMBP)

4. The easiest endings to win are pure pawn endings.

5. If you are only one pawn ahead, exchange pieces, not pawns.

6. Don't place your pawns on the same color squares as your Bishop.

7. Bishops are better than Knights in all but blocked pawn positions.

8. It is usually worth giving up a pawn to get a rook on the seventh rank.

9. Rooks belong behind passed pawns (RBBPP).

10. Blockade passed pawns with the King.

Here, for the last time, I got the initial list from a chess book for BEGINNERS and my only thought was to share it with others. I am only trying to help, so if you want to rip apart the list, carry on. Maybe try what some have done and add something constructive to it.

You only need to know one concept to make it fairly far:

1.  Open up the tactics trainer on this site and replace real games of chess with this tool until you are able to maintain a decent rating with the tool (decent will of course be a matter of opinion).  Once you've maintained a decent level, say 1500-1600 for a few sessions, start phasing in games to balance out your abilities.

Depending on how beginner you are, this process may start off as being very very frustrating, as you never seem to get any of the problems right.  After you've seen enough of them, your brain will develop intuition and your gameplay will skyrocket.  As for how many problems are enough, this too will vary from player to player.  Over the span of the past year, I've completed roughly 8,000 problems and experienced a steady climb in both tactical and overall rating.

Good luck!

Well, I am by far no expert, and am routinely handed my backside in games...

This being said, there is one point of advice that has reverbrated in this thread time and time again... with the obvious exception that all rules have exceptions;

Control of the center is control of the game.

Using pawns early to gain space is not necessarily opposed to making as few pawn moves as possible in the opening.  After all, there really are only two pawns in the center.

Same with the rules 3 and 5.  3) If you control the center before attacking on the wings... then you have control of the center.  5) If your opponant attacks on the wings (because you control the center) then attack through the center.

I do have one personal piece of advice that I haven't seen anyone else mention...  Many people that begin chess have the idea, usually witout realizing it, that they are in control of their own game.  This is false, as anyone who has played very much can tell you. 

Many beginners begin to formulate plans, but only partially.  They will envision their opening, an inpenatrable fortress... their power pieces all lined up in the center ready to smash their opponants walls down...

Then when they play, their opponant just keeps making all the 'wrong' moves, and screwing up their pretty fortress. Tey keep attacking and not letting them make it inpenetrable, or distracting their power pieces by making them support this piece, then that piece... until the player realizes that his army is in shambles and his wonderful plans didnt help.

Remember that your opponant has plans of their own.  Their plans hinge on making your plans worthless.  Remain flexible, and even if you walk into a game 'knowing' that you will lose... try and make the win as difficult and expensive for your opponant as possible.

Try and figure out what your opponant's plans are before they themselves know what they will be.  If you see a move that your opponant could make that would hurt you, dont hope they wont notice... take care of it... either by eliminating the weakness, by minimizing the damage, by retalliating to even the loss, or by forcing them to go elsewhere (checks are great for this).

By beginning to realize what your opponants plans might be, how they might capitalize on them, what their advantages are, and how you might shut them down... in my mind, you have really begun to play chess... whether you are successful or not.  Too many players focus soley on their own game.

The way I see it: Elplates -with a very fitting nick, if I may add-, simply volunteered to share some information. Tonydal made a remark, which perspired sarcasm or humour, but was never impolite. Unfortunately, no two people see things alike. And thanks to that, we all have the opporunity to improve every day, as we all learnt with each and every post... just a thought  

I think I might add a piece of advice here (despite the fact I am an amateur.. I just wanna say it!)

PUSH YOUR PAWNS!!!

seriously in my recent games, whenever I've gotten t the point where I'm thinking "What should I do now" PUSH A PAWN! it really works

Two  key words that keep cropping up during the game is to play  Actively and Safely.

What helped me the most from "Chess for Dummies" was the section on pawn structure weaknesses and the 10 best games.

What drew me to this topic was the title, "Laws of Space"...  I was hoping for something from Star Trek...  

Anyhoo, it seems to me that you will find that beginners are addicted to openings, developing players are addicted to tactics, expert players are addicted to endgames, and masters are addicted to strategy.  What this has to do with the 64 squares on the board, is that we all see the control of space differently.  There is an awesome article in this month's Chess Life about how computers have further refined what is and isn't acceptable at different points of the game.  Computers are addicted to numbers, as it were, and we're just starting to scratch the surface of what they can tell us about the control of space.  When Dr. Shannon first hypothesized the values that we've assigned to positions (i.e. doubled pawns are a .50 advantage to your opponent), Chess theory was still in its infancy, despite 500 years of analysis by human thought.  In the 20th century, The Hypermoderns had turned the game on its head, but only fairly recently have many Grandmasters begun to look at those so-called concrete positions and realized that loosening pawn structure is not always a bad thing.

It's great to have an understanding of what makes a move, a good move.  But laws are meant to be broken - if not because the occasional revolution will lead to better understanding, then simply because under the surface there are exceptions to every rule.

Chess for dummies is a great book